Stroke Survivors and Those at Risk Urged to Focus on Yoga and Tai Chi

One of Australia’s biggest health issues could be checked if more people took up yoga or tai chi and reduced their blood pressure, an Australian study has found.

Stroke costs the country $5 billion a year through treatment and loss of productivity, affecting 56,000 Australians in 2017, equivalent to one stroke every nine minutes.

A paper by researchers from Monash University, the University of South Australia (UniSA) and the University of Melbourne shows the impact that mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) such as yoga and tai chi can have on reducing hypertension, fatty acids and blood sugar levels – all risk factors for stroke.